Chapter 194: I Practice with Sincerity

The white girl on the podium looked like a beautiful doll, captivating in her appearance, but her beauty couldn't overshadow the tense atmosphere in the lecture hall.

Below, dozens of Yanjing University students stared intently at the podium. Their fists were clenched, their expressions anxious. Clearly, they were not focused on the white girl's beauty but on something else.

At this moment, the white girl on the podium suddenly spoke. Her voice was still as clear and pleasant as a nightingale, but Zhou Ming couldn't understand her words. It didn't seem to be English; it sounded a bit like German. Fortunately, the middle-aged woman beside her quickly translated into Chinese: "I heard that Yanjing University is one of the top universities here. How come your students are so irresponsible? Aren't you going to defend yourselves?"

As soon as the translation was complete, a student below slammed the table and said, "What are you talking about? Do you really think you're some exalted saint? We don't have time to argue with someone who distorts facts."

The students at Yanjing University spoke while the middle-aged woman translated. After the translation, the white girl shook her head and said, "Is defamation and abuse the way Chinese people debate? Or are you afraid? Do you already believe you've lost but are unwilling to accept defeat, so you resort to this kind of expression? You say I'm distorting facts, so what exactly have I distorted?"

"Who says that? Your decaying bourgeois theories can't contaminate our spiritual world! You're destined to fail!" someone shouted from below.

"Don't you know what you're distorting? You need to ask us? Your twisted theories can only deceive three-year-olds. We won't believe you!" another person yelled.

"Decaying bourgeois theories? It seems only you would say that," the white girl said. "Under our decaying bourgeois theories, at least our people are free. We can breathe every inch of air freely, speak our minds in any corner, and don't have to worry about corrupt officials, as there are systems in place to supervise them. Only slaves are confined in giant cages and driven to do hard labor by their masters without daring to complain."

The Yanjing University students, being smart, immediately recognized the white girl's sarcasm. They shouted back rudely, "You're the slave! Your whole family are slaves!"

The white girl frowned slightly and said, "Do you only care about your self-esteem and thus resort to baseless insults?"

"You were the first to insult us. Are you saying it's only permissible for you to set fires while we're not allowed to light lamps? Is that what your so-called freedom is like? It seems you're just wearing a mask of hypocrisy. Once uncovered, it's all ugly!" someone else shouted.

"Is that so? I'm sorry if I used slaves as a metaphor. But apologies are just for my personal conduct and don't mean what I said is wrong. I believe the facts are as such. Even slaves won't praise slavery, but you will!" the white girl clarified. "You always shout about how good your system is, but history has proven that your system is the least efficient. Your system will make people's sense of responsibility weak, make you increasingly irresponsible, and foster corruption."

"Human behavior and thinking patterns are formed in specific environments. If I'm not mistaken, that's what you just said, right? So now I'm just pointing out some problems you have and telling you that freedom is the solution. But what about you? You're just cursing me. My God, I'm a lady."

The white girl continued with regret, "So what is this? I can responsibly tell you, this is a corrupt mindset, and such a mindset arises only in a corrupt environment. Those with a corrupt mindset won't respect others or persuade them with reason. They only know how to curse and defame, like ostriches burying their heads in the sand. It's self-deception!"

The white girl's words felt like a slap in the face to every student in the classroom, making them feel a burning pain on their faces. They stared at the white girl on the podium, who, despite her beauty, now seemed to them like a devil with an angelic face.

Listening to the white girl's words, Su Han whispered to Zhou Ming, "This foreign girl is too arrogant. Why don't you go up and teach her a lesson?"

Zhou Ming shook his head and replied, "These are Yanjing University students. I'm just an outsider. I don't have the right to represent them. Besides, didn't you just want to come in and listen? Let's see how these students fight back."

"Human beings are called human beings because we possess human civilization, and our human civilization is the possession of all the rights granted by heaven."

When the white girl said this, she paused for a moment and then continued, "First of all, we are all equal, so we must have the right to respect each other. Of course, we also have the right to be free from fear and hunger, to receive treatment and maintain health. But most importantly, we have the right to all freedoms, whether in our speech, actions, or beliefs. They should be free from any interference or restrictions. However, here, I see none of that, even though you constantly promote these things."

"From what you said just now, you seem to believe in your theories, but unfortunately, your leaders have already abandoned or are in a state of half-abandonment of these theories," the white girl said. "Your country wants to learn from our Western systems but doesn't want to give you freedom. As a result, you naively hope for it, but you forget that slave owners will never give slaves freedom."

If the white girl's previous words were a slap in the face to all the students at Yanjing University, then her subsequent words were a continuous series of slaps, leaving the students at the scene completely powerless.

Zhou Ming was very surprised: What's going on here?

He remembered that at Port City University, the students were exceptionally enthusiastic. Why were these students here so subdued? Was it just because the white girl was beautiful?

Students are supposed to be the most passionate, and Zhou Ming saw that they were all clenching their fists, their faces even showing veins, clearly very angry.

At this moment, Zhou Ming suddenly remembered the conversation he and Su Han overheard before entering.

It seemed the white girl had already had many debates here, and each time she won completely, causing these students, despite their volcanic anger, to lack the courage to speak up in front of her.

The white girl lifted her head high, looking down like an imperious queen, and said to all the students at Yanjing University, "I heard this is the top university in this country, but it seems to be nothing special."

If the white girl's previous words were slaps, then this statement was like a sharp knife piercing every student's heart, making them so furious they almost wanted to spit blood but had no way to retaliate. After all, every word she said was reasoned and supported, while their words seemed childish and were easily debunked.

At this moment, every student at Yanjing University glared at the white girl on the podium, trembling with rage. It could be imagined that if the person on the podium were a random foreign man instead of a beautiful white girl, the angry students would likely rush up and beat him up.

Some students were also pulling their hair in frustration or covering their faces, slumped on the desks, mumbling, "Is there anyone? Anyone who can help us restore Yanjing's dignity and teach this foreign girl a lesson?"

Su Han seemed to be infected by this atmosphere of pessimism and anger. She turned to Zhou Ming and called him softly. Zhou Ming glanced at her, understanding her intention.

"I understand. I'll give it a try," Zhou Ming said, gently pinching Su Han's small face.

While Zhou Ming and Su Han were talking below, the white girl on the podium continued her speech: "This is the country I've always longed for, but coming here alone, I'm shocked by the situation. The people here are ignorant and lack civility, especially their numbness to freedom and their submission to the violence of the rulers. It's simply unbelievable…"

As the white girl spoke, the middle-aged woman beside her continued the simultaneous translation. This had been the case from the beginning, but this time, before the translation was completed, a laugh came from the back. Though it was faint, the white girl heard it. She looked up at Zhou Ming with displeasure and said, "God, what's happening?"

Originally, the white girl intended to criticize Zhou Ming subtly, but she didn't expect Zhou Ming to laugh even more. The white girl was momentarily stunned. She turned to look at the middle-aged woman beside her, who said in Chinese, "What exactly are you laughing at?"

Zhou Ming, realizing his behavior was impolite, tried to suppress his laughter and apologized, "Sorry, I lost my composure. I don't understand your language, but it sounds similar to Chinese. When I heard that lady just now say, 'I came to Hebei Province and practice with sincerity,' I couldn't help but laugh."

Upon hearing Zhou Ming's words, everyone in the lecture hall was initially stunned, but soon everyone started laughing.