As she learned more, she even felt a tinge of panic.
Could humans really do such things?
"Hanna, have you ordered the dishes?"
"Yes, I showed the waiter the names of the dishes you sent me on WeChat."
Hanna replied in very stiff Chinese.
Her command of the language was strong. Apart from using very peculiar grammar, she didn't mispronounce a single word.
This probably explained once again that the order of characters and grammatical structure don't really impact everyday communication and reading too much.
"Hehe, the roasted lamb here is truly exceptional, especially the roasted lamb leg, it's really crispy on the outside and tender inside. Right, Qiao Ze?"
"Mhm." Qiao Ze nodded.
Hanna's gaze shifted to Qiao Ze's youthful face, which remained as expressionless as ever.
After a moment of inner struggle, Hanna took the initiative to speak to Qiao Ze again, "Qiao Ze, I applied to come to Huaxia because I really wanted to see you. I just couldn't wrap my head around how the watermark in the paper was designed. But I must admit it's genius. It blends in so naturally. So I was eager yesterday, and I hope that can be understood."
"Mhm." Qiao Ze nodded again.
Hanna blinked expectantly, waiting for Qiao Ze to continue, but after three seconds she was sure... there was nothing more.
She felt somewhat aggrieved deep down.
She had crammed so many words for so long, specifically learning those complex sentences, just to show her sincerity.
"Haha, Hanna, you have to get used to Qiao Ze being a man of few words. If you want him to talk more, you have to talk about things that interest him. For instance, you keep talking about watermarks, but Qiao isn't really interested in that topic at all," Su Mucheng earnestly explained.
"Oh, what does Qiao take an interest in then?" Hanna asked earnestly.
"Like when he tutors me, that's when he talks the most," Su Mucheng thought for a moment, then candidly replied.
"Do you often discuss math online?" Qiao Ze suddenly asked.
"Eh?" Hanna was momentarily stunned, but upon realizing Qiao Ze was indeed asking her, she quickly nodded and said, "Yes, quite often."
"I want to see how you discuss normally," Qiao Ze stated.
"Eh?" Hanna's inner struggle began anew.
After all, if there were group discussions, they were on WhatsApp or Telegram, and more personal conversations usually happened over email. The contents of these chats were very private.
But if she wanted to communicate smoothly with this guy...
When Hanna thought of her purpose for coming to Huaxia, she finally bit the bullet and took out her phone.
"I can show you the group where we discuss academic matters more, but you can't spread what we talk about," she said.
"I'm just looking," Qiao Ze assured.
Hanna gave Qiao Ze a glance, pulled up a group chat in WhatsApp, and handed over her phone.
Qiao Ze began to browse quickly...
Soon Qiao Ze established that such discussions indeed had their bright spots, but they were really not efficient.
Five minutes later, Qiao Ze handed the phone back to Hanna, commenting, "You all like to complain, and it seriously affects efficiency."
"Eh?" Hanna blinked but still earnestly explained, "But our complaints are targeted. The school's demands are often unscientific."
"Is it so difficult for you to publish papers above Q2?" Qiao Ze inquired.
The question perplexed Hanna.
Above Q2, where wasn't it difficult?
"Why do you think it's easy for us to publish papers above Q2?"
"Language penetration rate," he said.
"Language is one thing, but research needs results to publish papers."
"Are Q2 level results, which almost don't need to be innovative, really that hard for you all? I see in the group chat, you all address each other as doctor," Qiao Ze frowned, to him, it was a matter of understanding.
Hanna blinked, suddenly feeling somewhat wronged.
So what about being a doctor?
It's hard for a doctor to publish papers! The school's standards are so high...
But what could she say? She could only emphasize seriously, "It's really hard!"
Qiao Ze looked at Su Mucheng with a hint of surprise.
The girl instantly caught on.
"No, Qiao, after all, Hanna is European, you know. Actually, when it comes to basic mathematics, physics, and such, the true talents are mostly in the United States! Think about it, Harvard, Princeton, Berkeley, Columbia University, aren't all these schools in the United States? Hanna mostly interacts with European schools, so it's normal for them to find it difficult," Su Mucheng reasoned.
Qiao Ze nodded slightly.
"So, Qiao, you can't be arrogant. You see, you might be strong at our school, and even compared to Hanna you might be impressive. But if you were at Princeton, you'd find yourself to be quite normal, maybe just a bit smarter than others. Because everyone there is just casually writing papers and then getting them published. Right, Hanna?"
Hanna stared blankly at Su Mucheng.
What kind of absurd logic was this?
What made these youngsters think that being in a prestigious school meant you could just casually scribble down papers and get them published?
"So it's not like that, it's also hard for them to publish papers?" Qiao Ze caught on to Hanna's facial expression.
"Mhm, I know a doctor from Princeton University whose research is in spectral sequences and differential wave equations. To my knowledge, he published three Q1 papers during his four years as a Ph.D. student," Hanna spoke truthfully.
"Oh? What's his name?"