When Qin Siyang arrived at the library's study room, Li Pengfei was discussing something with Wen Shu.
"Brother Qin, you're here."
"Yeah. It's been a while since I last saw Little Fei. I've actually missed you."
Li Pengfei looked at Qin Siyang with his bright, watery eyes.
For some reason, Qin Siyang felt there was a hint of mischief on Little Fei's innocent face.
"Huh? Didn't you say Dean Chen was here too? Where is she?"
"Oh, Aunt Chen went to the medical section to look for some books."
Thinking of the whole box of miraculous medicines Chen Fenghe had given him, Qin Siyang blurted out, "Dean Chen still needs to read books?"
"Mhm. When she's home, Aunt Chen is either reading or looking up information. She's really busy."
"Well... I guess Dean Chen really is proof that hard work pays off."
Qin Siyang didn't even bother pretending to read. He pulled over a chair and sat to one side, scrolling through the forums on his phone while glancing over at Wen Shu and Li Pengfei from time to time as they talked.
Li Pengfei excitedly pointed to a page in the book and looked at Wen Shu.
"Big Sister Wen, look! The history books all say this battle was lost because there were problems with grain supplies, so the army couldn't keep fighting. But I don't think it was just the food. Morale was important too. It says here they hadn't had a proper meal for several days..."
"Mhm, that makes sense..."
Qin Siyang watched Wen Shu, his gaze lingering on her without realizing it, his thoughts drifting.
People always said looking at a beautiful woman was pleasing to the eye.
Qin Siyang couldn't agree more.
She was focused on discussing the book with Li Pengfei. Her head tilted slightly, the corners of her lips curved into a faint smile. Her long hair fell naturally over her shoulder, and her eyelashes trembled gently, touched with a pale golden glow by the bright lights.
She looked like a painting.
Qin Siyang sighed inwardly, and his thoughts wandered.
'How was the last guy so blind and stupid in high school, devoting himself entirely to Li Jingwen?'
He truly couldn't understand it now.
Back then, it was like he'd been possessed, completely bewitched. He'd put that girl, with her unpredictable temper and constant hot-and-cold attitude, at the center of his life.
For three whole years, he'd treated her like the cinnabar mark on his heart, following her around wherever she went.
Whenever he felt like he couldn't take it anymore, he'd comfort himself.
He'd tell himself that youthful passion was always impossible to control, that love was always painful and profound, that the road ahead was always rough and difficult.
Looking back now, he'd really been blind and foolish, wasting some of the best years of his life.
Instead of walking the broad, sunlit road, he'd insisted on forcing his way down a rugged path.
There had really been something wrong with his head.
'Stupid!'
'But fortunately...'
A faint smile appeared on Qin Siyang's lips as his eyes settled on Wen Shu.
All the bitterness he had endured in his previous life had come back twice as sweet in this one.
He no longer thought about Li Jingwen.
She had long since become nothing more than a blurry background in his memories, one that only served to highlight Wen Shu's intelligence, kindness, determination, gentle way of speaking, and inner strength.
And the way she treated him... was different too.
The gentle looks she gave him without realizing it, the lingering glances, all those little acts of concern that seemed casual yet were always centered around him, they seeped into his heart bit by bit, slowly fermenting into overwhelming sweetness.
The corners of Qin Siyang's mouth kept rising.
'So this is what it feels like when two people like each other.'
"Qin Siyang, why don't you tell Li Pengfei what you think?"
Wen Shu's question suddenly interrupted his thoughts.
"Uh... Huh? My thoughts on what?"
Li Pengfei said, "Brother Qin, you've been sitting there watching and listening to us this whole time. Don't tell me you didn't hear a single thing? Were you just daydreaming?"
"Well... I've had a lot going on lately, so I was thinking about how to deal with a few problems... What were you two discussing? Fill me in?", Qin Siyang stammered, trying to cover for himself.
"I was reading a book that says eastern people have an inherent national flaw of being 'dishonest and always trying to take small advantages,' while foreigners don't. It gives all kinds of examples from eastern and foreign history, as well as modern times, and it sounds very convincing. I just feel like something's wrong with it, but I don't know how to argue against it. What do you think?"
Qin Siyang frowned, "After the apocalypse, people from every country are all living together in the safe zones, and there are still people using this 'national character flaw' nonsense to mislead others? Don't bother with it. Just throw that garbage book straight into the trash."
Li Pengfei said seriously, "If he's wrong, we should refute him first, then throw it into the trash. One person can only think about so many things. If we throw away everything just because someone says something different from what we believe, then wouldn't we end up missing out on a lot of knowledge?"
"With how rigorous you are, you really do have the makings of a researcher."
Watching Li Pengfei carefully emphasize every word, Qin Siyang felt as if a miniature Li Tianming were standing in front of him.
'Sigh! Little Fei was so clever and adorable now. Hopefully he won't grow up to be like Old Li, a balding man with a beer belly.'
"Brother Qin, how should we refute him?"
If it had been any other kid, Qin Siyang would've just told them to go play somewhere else.
But this was Little Fei, so he patiently explained.
"People like this take all the flaws that are part of human nature and blame them entirely on east's supposed national flaws. Then they take all the good qualities in human nature and credit them entirely to the virtues of foreign cultures."
"No matter how they dress it up, I can expose the lie with one sentence, power and profit don't belong to any race, and gratitude, hatred, love, and resentment know no borders."
"Wow..."
Li Pengfei stared at Qin Siyang without blinking until he finished explaining, then clapped enthusiastically.
"Brother Qin, you're amazing! No wonder Uncle Li praises you all the time at home!"
Seeing Li Pengfei's eyes light up, Qin Siyang smiled with satisfaction, "Arguments from people with ulterior motives like that have no value whatsoever. You'd better read less of that kind of thing in the future."
"Okay!"
Wen Shu looked at Qin Siyang with some surprise, "Where did you learn that line of thinking?"
"Theories don't have to come from books. They can come from experience too," Qin Siyang raised his chin with quiet confidence, "I deal with both eastern people and foreigners all the time in the safe zones. Everyone has one nose, two eyes, and more or less the same thoughts. No matter what country someone came from before the apocalypse, I treat them the same. It's not like one group is inherently nobler than another."
Wen Shu smiled and sighed softly, "That's true. Your experience now is far richer than that of the people writing these books."
Qin Siyang scratched the back of his neck, "It's nothing special."
After spending the rest of the time reading with the two of them, Qin Siyang went back to the guesthouse lobby with Wen Shu for dinner. They chatted and laughed as they ate, feeling completely at ease.
That night, lying on his pillow, Qin Siyang still wore a lingering smile.
"If life could always be this peaceful and wonderful, how happy that would be!"