Quenching

Wanli Fuguang's eyes were sincere and earnest.

Huang Qiaqia took a breath, opened her mouth, thought of her roommates' advice, let out a long breath, and shook her head.

Wanli Fuguang gave a faint smile, and the waiter began to serve the dishes.

Huang Qiaqia looked at the shop assistant in surprise.

"We didn't order Wagyu beef, tuna, or rose pastries."

The shop assistant left with a polite smile.

Wanli Fuguang released Huang Qiaqia's hand, wiped his hands with a damp towel, and then picked up his dinner fork.

"These are what my friend ordered for me, please try them."

Huang Qiaqia stared at the wet towel, her face flushing again.

Huang Qiaqia took a bite of the rose pastry, but it wasn't very tasty, so she put it on a plate.

"Are these all your favorite foods?"

Wanli Fuguang glanced at Huang Qiaqia, and a smile returned to his face.

"what happened?"

Huang Qiaqia wiped her mouth with a napkin; there was nothing on her lips.

“My friend said you might like the big fish kite, but you didn’t. This rose pastry was also ordered for you by my friend, but you didn’t like it either.”

Wanli Fuguang took a bite of Wagyu beef and chuckled softly.

Huang Qiaqia frowned. She didn't understand why Wanli Fuguang was always smiling. Did she have a particularly cheerful appearance?

Why is his friend ordering food for him? Is his friend a chef?

Wu Haofeng stared intently into the distance.

The old man selling kites leaned against a bare tree, stamping his feet, and asked Wu Haofeng curiously.

"Young man, why are you staring at the kite string instead of the kite itself?"

As Wu Haofeng listened, the gears whirred and rattled, and with a displeased expression, he raised his eyelids and looked at the egret kite soaring in the air, with the biting north wind howling.

"I'm wondering when it will break."

Huang Qiaqia ran wildly and laughed freely in the gurgling cold current, piercing through the chill.

"Don't worry, with such strong winds, I chose the line that's easiest to break, so it won't fly for long."

Wu Haofeng lowered his head, pursed his lips, sent a message to the driver, and then looked up.

"Snap." The kite string broke.

The old man selling kites shrank his hands and hunched his back.

Wu Haofeng suppressed a smile, gave the old man another fifty yuan, and strode away.

"Let's choose another kite?"

Wanli Fuguang smiled as he wrapped a thick scarf around Huang Qiaqia's neck.

"Maybe next time! I haven't finished my homework yet, I have to go back to school."

"Let me take you there! My name is Wu Haofeng."

Wu Haofeng handed Wanli Fuguang his new scarf and extended his hand.

Wanli Fuguang wore a matching couple's scarf, just like Huang Qiaqia's.

"Wu Haofeng, my friend. He's also from your school."

"Hey, what year are you in? What department are you in?"

Huang Qiaqia brushed aside his messy hair and took a closer look at Wu Haofeng. The young man had regular features.

"Business management."

Wu Haofeng smiled politely, walked towards the old man selling kites, and handed him the spool of kite string.

"You should go back! We won't buy the kite."

"Alright, you guys really love flying kites in the dead of winter."

******

In the dormitory, Cheng Yiyi dragged Huang Qiaqia along, hurrying to leave with her.

"I'm not going. I finally have a day off from class, I want to stay in my dorm."

"Would you like some braised pork that my boyfriend made?"

Huang Qiaqia swallowed hard, raised his head, and paused, holding the black carbon pen in his hand.

"You... I'm going to see your loud professor. He's making so much noise that I can't concentrate on my homework."

"My classmate went to a speech contest. What if the professor takes attendance and deducts credits?"

Huang Qiaqia slowly put down the ballpoint pen in her hand, muttering in dissatisfaction.

"It's so cold, and I still have to carry my notebook, along with other things like a pen, a thermos, beef jerky, and chocolate..."

Cheng Yiyi gave Huang Qiaqia a hard push, and she slowly moved forward.

"Stop dawdling, change your clothes quickly, and get a seat in the front row as soon as possible. You absolutely can't be late."

"Hey? You're in business administration, right?"

"Are you crazy! Let's go."

Cheng Yiyi stood in front of the mirror, looking at her makeup. Not bad. She took Huang Qiaqia's hand and started walking.

******

In the classroom, Cheng Yiyi saw the man on the podium. He was gentle and refined, with handsome eyebrows that slanted upwards towards his temples, as if they held beautiful poems hidden within them. His delicate brow bone revealed intelligence and wisdom in his refined demeanor.

The subtle aroma of red tea emanating from the man seemed to gently resonate in the hearts of every girl in the front row.

Huang Qiaqia stared wide-eyed and opened her mouth wide.

"Since you've been dawdling in your dorm, we'll have to sit in the third row now. This is our department's new professor, isn't he handsome and talented!"

Cheng Yiyi looked around at the girls, all of whom were full of enthusiasm for learning. She turned her head and found that Huang Qiaqia was still staring blankly at the new professor. She gave her a disdainful look, lifted Huang Qiaqia's chin, sat up straight, and became more alert.

"It is an honor to study with you all this semester. My name is Wu Haofeng."

Wu Haofeng took a step back and pointed at the big screen.

"Professor, do you think the love story of Cinderella and the prince really exists?"

Before Wu Haofeng could even speak, a female student in the first row asked a question.

She just found out online that Wu Haofeng's leather shoes are worth at least six figures, his tie seven figures, and his watch is from a brand she'd never seen before; it must have been custom-made by a craftsman.

Wu Haofeng slowly turned around, saw Huang Qiaqia with her head down, and raised his voice.

"Although the means of production should be shared by everyone, I have never seen a capitalist who is willing to share the means of production. In fact, there is an irreconcilable contradiction between capitalists and the proletariat, but this is beautified."

Another girl in the first row spoke in a cheerful voice.

"However, we are not being exploited, and we do not have irreconcilable contradictions with the bourgeoisie."

"You haven't experienced it yet, or rather, you haven't truly felt it, because you haven't been directly exploited by capitalists. In fact, you can go and work, see the complexity of society and another side of human nature, and understand from a different perspective what kind of group the so-called capitalists are."

Wu Haofeng noticed that Huang Qiaqia's brows furrowed slightly, and a hint of joy appeared on her face.

A female student in the second row suddenly stood up, her delicate and pretty face beaming with pride.

"Aren't there any kind-hearted capitalists?"

"Capital becomes active when it has a 20% profit; it becomes reckless when it has a 50% profit; it can trample on man-made laws when it has a 100% profit; and what about a 300% profit?"

Wu Haofeng kept his voice down, noticing that Huang Qiaqia's face looked worse and she seemed to be breathing heavily.

The first female student to ask a question also stood up.

"Capital is ultimately controlled by capitalists. They are human beings, and humans have human nature. Not all capitalists only focus on profit and production, or only exploit and oppress. They just want to obtain more surplus value."

"However, capitalists are still human beings after all. It's just that the irreconcilable contradiction between capitalists and the proletariat is something that no one can change or resist."

Seeing Huang Qiaqia's increasingly furrowed brows, Wu Haofeng felt a surge of joy; it would be best if she could give up Wanli Fuguang herself.

Finally, the bell rang, and the cheerful classroom atmosphere continued into the afternoon. The girls surrounded Wu Haofeng, asking for his contact information, while Cheng Yiyi pushed Huang Qiaqia hard.